Heads, I Win—Tails, You Lose
by Yuri Ayato
Summary: Leone gets Lubbock to absentmindedly agree to a bet he can't win while he's working, but he ends up getting something out of it anyway. [Complete]


**Author's Note: I refuse to accept that people don't believe this to be a legitimate ship, so you can't make me stop shipping this. I mean, in the last few episodes, they seem to be really close—and you can kinda tell in earlier episodes if you squint. I dunno, if people can ship a dog and a bird with little seen interaction throughout the game and treat it as a legitimate ship, I'm allowed to do the same with these two.**

* * *

"Heads, I win; tails, you lose!"

It was a ridiculous method to get her way, but hey, it would work.

"Fine," Lubbock said, more focused on arranging the book order that had been messed up a bit from people removing books from the shelves and sometimes putting them back where they didn't belong. It was a tedious task, but since it was his shop, he was responsible for making sure the books were in the right places.

There was a loud smack as Leone slapped the coin she had onto the back of her hand. "Tails!"

He couldn't remember how exactly the blond had phrased what she said, but he was able to gather that he had just lost. And since this was Leone, there was no way he would possibly be able to weasel his way out. "Crap."

"There was no way for you to win anyway. Weren't you paying attention? _Heads, I win; tails, you lose!_"

Letting out a growl of irritation, Lubbock whipped around and hurled the book in his hand at Leone's head. "That's not how it works!"

She burst out laughing as she just barely was able to dodge the object flying towards face, not fazed even in the slightest. "Hey, I'm not the one who agreed to those conditions!"

"Yeah, yeah... What have I gotten myself into?"

"You're gonna take me out for a drink!"

* * *

_A drink or three drinks?_ Lubbock found himself mentally questioning, recalling that Leone had only said he'd be buying her one. On the other hand, it was stupid to expect that she would only have one and that he would have any money left.

Fortunately, he only had enough money for three drinks—four, actually, but he had decided to buy one for himself as well. It was also fortunate that she had built up some kind of tolerance to alcohol, and while one bottle was beginning to make Lubbock feel lightheaded and a tad sick to his stomach, Leone was only a bit tipsy as she downed her third bottle.

"Ah—hold on, I'll be right back."

Excusing himself as quickly as he could, he stood up and left the bar. He was glad he didn't make any attempt to get to the restroom, which was a bit farther away than the exit, as he collapsed on his hands and knees as soon as he was outside. He put a hand over his mouth, coughing and trying to keep himself from being sick. Of course, he wasn't able to do so successfully, and everything he had drank forced it way up from his stomach.

A few minutes passed—what could have even been left after the first few _seconds_ of this?!—and his trembling body gave out and her fell onto his side, gasping as he tried to get his breath back.

"Lubba! You okay?"

Leone's balance was a bit off as she rushed over to her friend, but she looked just fine other than that and the light blush on her face. She was doing far better than he was, for sure.

With a quiet groan, Lubbock pushed himself into a sitting position. "Yeah..."

"Think we should go now?"

Her breath smelled like alcohol, causing him to suppress a gag. "Actually, I have to get back to the shop." He huffed and got to his feet. "There's still some work I have to do..."

"Aw! There's more work to do? I could _never_ put up with having a regular job!"

Lubbock shrugged, folding his hands behind his head. "It's got its ups and downs."

"I guess we should go then." Leone stood back up, grabbing Lubbock's arm and pulling him along with her.

The full moon gave her gold hair a beautiful and almost metallic appearance, her honey-colored eyes sparkled with the frosty white glow of the moon and stars, and the silvery light fell upon her body in a surreal way. It was beautiful, and how he was able to overlook that every other time they were out together at night was a mystery. Perhaps this was because they'd never really had time alone together once the sun had set, or perhaps not. Either way, it was gorgeous and he had only just noticed.

* * *

Grinning and waving, Leone said her goodbyes. "I'll see you later, Lubba!"

"I'll try to be quick about this," Lubbock replied, glancing back into his bookstore with an expression of tiredness and slight exasperation. "Uh, hold on a sec..."

He went to the section he had for poetry, scanning the surnames written on the spines of each book until he found one marked _William Shakespeare_. He took it from the shelf and handed it to Leone. "It shouldn't be very far in... The one titled _Sonnet 18_."

With a look of confusion, Leone took the book and flipped forward until finding what she was told to read. She whispered _Oh my God_ a few times while reading it, sounding far more amused than anything else. She snapped the book closed and started laughing as if it was the most hilarious thing ever written. As her laughter died down, however, she immediately started apologizing.

"Okay, sorry, sorry, sorry! But what the _hell_?"

He awkwardly leaned against the doorway, not knowing how to put what he wanted to say into words. "That poem was all I could think about on the way back."

"Yeah, okay, but why?"

"Well, ah...maybe...Najenda isn't really the one I..."

It would be a lie to say he didn't suck at being a playboy, but awkwardness and an inability to voice what was on his mind wasn't the reason for that. Rather, they either wanted him dead or they were uninterested from the start and nothing he said or did could change their minds. This time was far different, however—he didn't know exactly how to make the moves he wanted to and nothing was coming out of his mouth.

"Maybe she's not my type... You said _Heads, I win; tails, you lose_. You got tails, but I won something, too. I've found out I might have a chance with someone else."

Not allowing himself any time to back out of his sudden idea, he gave Leone a quick, gentle kiss.

In turn, she just giggled. "Maybe you do." She grabbed his shoulders and pulled him closer, messing up his hair as she rubbed her cheek against his head. "Well, hurry up! I'll be waiting!"

Lubbock waved as she left, then returned to his job of making sure everything was organized and ready for the next day.

And then he remembered something he had once read in a book, a feeling of happiness washed over him. There was a reason she had ruffled his hair with her cheek, and it meant he might actually have a chance.

* * *

**Author's Note: Now, for those of you who didn't know, felines rub up against things, typically using their cheeks, to claim ownership over something or someone. Even when Lionelle isn't activated, using it still seems to have side effects, so by rubbing her face on Lubbock, she was basically saying, _You're mine._**

**Someone please confiscate my fanfiction-writing privileges now because I'm about to use these two to try my hand at writing straight sex.**


End file.
